Abstract: Intersectionality theory suggests that group identities based on
the intersection of different social categories are unique and cannot be
understood by simply adding together the elements of each separate identity
(Cole & Zucker, 2007). Across two studies, we apply an intersectional
analysis to investigate how the interaction of sexual orientation and race
affect perceptions of group similarity and stereotype content. We
hypothesized that: (1) groups with multiple stigmatized identities (e.g.
gay black men) would be evaluated as less similar overall compared to
groups with one or no stigmatized identities, (2) the interaction of race
and sexual orientation would produce unique stereotypical content that was
not the result of adding stereotypes related to race and sexual orientation
and (3) groups with multiple stigmatized identities would produce
significantly more unique stereotypical attributes than groups with one or
no stigmatized identities. Our results contribute to research and theory
building by demonstrating that the intersection of ethnic and sexual
orientation stereotypes is complex and produce meaningful differences in
the way groups are perceived.